In his own words: Kane on giving back for the holidays

My favorite Christmas present growing up, by far, was a hockey stick from my mom and dad. My parents normally weren't into the $200 sticks - mine were more in the $30 range - but this one, the new Easton Synergy, was an exception. I still remember going outside and playing pond hockey that afternoon.
I broke that stick a week later - but that's beside the point. I'll always remember the feeling of receiving that gift, and each year at Christmas I want to provide that same feeling to local children whose parents might not be able to afford the same opportunities.

My first year in Buffalo, I was able to take some kids to Chef's Restaurant for a Christmas dinner. This year, in keeping with that tradition, I took 50 children to a personal favorite: Tempo Restaurant in Allentown. It's a place I frequent at least once a week, if not more.
Now, Tempo isn't exactly the first place you'd think to take a group of kids - there are some things on the menu that, at their age, I know I wouldn't want to eat. But I thought, how cool would it be to take these children to an upscale place they've never been?
We started off the evening with meatballs and some calamari. A lot of the kids actually liked the calamari - before they found out what it was. Needless to say, there were some interesting faces after we told them. We kept it simple for the main course with a family-style Turkey dinner and some ice cream to cap it off.
I was able to meet all 50 children throughout the night. There was a small group from Hasek's Heroes, which is a program founded by former Sabres goalie Dominik Hasek that provides hockey equipment and ice time for children of low-income families. The rest of the kids were from King Center Charter School in Buffalo.

I started off with the first table and worked my way around as the night went on. There were some great personalities, to say the least. For example: at the first table I sat down with, there was one guy who was a big actor. Every question I'd ask, he'd come up with a story behind it.
Then there were a couple of six-year-old twins, brother and sister. I'll tell you, those kids are going to be on TV very soon. They were super entertaining, and super cute. It was really fun to sit and talk with them.
Some of the parents picked their kids up after dinner and I guess the kids relayed the message of how the night went. It was really gratifying to have some of them come up to me and thank me. You could see the appreciation on their faces when I talked to them, and that's all I can ask for.
I wanted to send the kids home with a gift, but I had to think of something that would work for boys and girls of different age groups. I settled on Beats headphones, and as I got to know the kids throughout the night, I became more and more confident with my selection.

Their reaction when they all opened the gifts together was so special. I think it made me happier than it made them, like the feeling of receiving that Synergy stick all over again.
Hopefully, this gift doesn't break in a week. Even if it does, I've learned it's the memory that counts.